That's Just Super
by Little Ghostie
Summary: AU-ish. When Sonic gets sent to Earth, something goes wrong, and not only is he alone, he's gone Super too! Now he has to get the Chaos Emeralds and get back home, while protecting Earth from a new threat. With his powers slowly failing, can he do it?
1. Chapter 1

Hi there everybody.

Okay, so this is my first story here on this site. That doesn't mean it's my first story ever. Just on this site…

Disclaimer: I don't own Sonic or any related characters, or the very beginning of the story. I only own the main plot. If it bears resemblance to any other story here or anywhere else, that is purely coincidental. Enjoy.

Chapter One

Sonic smirked as he ran down the corridor, smashing robots left, right and center. Cream had been captured by Dr. Eggman, as her distraught mother had tearfully told him, and now he was on something of a search-and-rescue mission as he had sped off before Tails could come up with an _actual_ plan. And so far, this was proving to be very easy.

He smirked again as he swerved left through an open door, barely missing a robot's fist as it came crashing down upon him-not that he really noticed.

Too easy.

Meanwhile, Cream stood in her small, dome-shaped cell, watching Dr. Eggman grumble in annoyance as, behind him, several small monitors showed the blue hedgehog making his way to the center of the base. She held Cheese tightly as Sonic trashed another robot. Dr. Eggman pounded the control panel in frustration.

"Why does that cursed Sonic _always_ get in my way?!" he roared. Cream decided it was time to speak up.

"He doesn't get in your way Dr. Eggman; Sonic just tries to stop you doing all the bad things you like to do." She said, putting on a brave face as he turned to look at her angrily.

"Chao chao!" Cheese cried, backing her up.

"Oh, is that so? Well he's too late to stop me this time!" he said happily. And above them, Rouge's eyes glittered as he held out the Red Chaos Emerald and continued and then finished his speech with, "He can't stop-!"

Suddenly, the door right behind him burst open, and Cream cried, "Sonic!"

"Sonic!" Mimicked Dr. Eggman, a little more resigned, before grinning. "Too late!" He inserted the Chaos Emerald into the machine behind him and started pressing buttons at a pace to rival Sonic's speed. Finally, he held up a button. "You'll never stop me now Sonic! All I have to do is push this button!" he laughed, thinking he had Sonic cornered. Sonic, however, smirked. "Yeah," he said, "If you can press it before I grab it!"

Dr. Eggman froze, then grinned again as another robot appeared behind Sonic. "Why don't you give it a try?" The robot started firing at Sonic. It missed. Then Sonic jumped in front of Dr. Eggman. "No, wait, hold your fire! Gah!" he ducked as a spray of bullets went over his head and hit the machine. It was then he realized that, in clenching his hand while covering himself, he'd already pushed the button. "Ha ha, here we go!" he cried, when suddenly, sparks started to fly. Literally.

He looked behind him.

And there was a flash of light.

Everyone in the room covered their eyes from the blinding light. Finally, after what seemed like hours but was really only a few seconds, the light started to fade away. The second it was gone, the door burst open, and Tails, Amy and Knuckles ran inside. They looked around wildly.

"Cream!" Amy cried, rushing over to the cage and hitting it with her hammer. The transparent material gave way after three hits, and she hugged little Cream and Cheese as they started to cry.

"H-he's-s g-gone, A-Amy," sobbed Cream. "G-gone…"

"Gone?" Amy frowned. "Who's gone? Where've they gone to? Cream, what are you talking about?" But Cream just kept repeating the words "He's gone, gone," again and again.

Tails looked around, then frowned. He rounded on Dr. Eggman, who was still standing in the same spot and trembling slightly.

"Where are they?" his voice was dangerously quiet. Knuckles glanced around, and then stood beside him, having noticed what was missing.

"Where are what?" Asked Amy, looking around the room as well, and taking a bit longer to grasp what was no longer there.

"I-I-I don't know!" Dr. Eggman burst out. "I was just activating my absolutely brilliant new machine, and he disappeared! And he took _my_ Chaos Emeralds with him!"

"Oh, quit being such a crybaby over _my _Emeralds." Rouge swooped down from the ceiling and landed in front of him, her hands on her hips, scowling. "Darn, that's once more I have been denied them…"

"Rouge!" Knuckles, Tails and Amy cried in surprise. Cream and Cheese quieted down a bit to look up at the newcomer. "What are you doing here?"

"Taking what's _mine_, of course," She replied, striking a pose. "And having it stolen from right under my nose, _again_…" She muttered, annoyed.

"What's missing?" Amy asked, still in the dark.

Tails sighed and turned to confused pink hedgehog. "Look around Amy; what do you think?"

"Umm…The Chaos Emeralds?"

"Uhh…And?"

Amy looked around one more time. And then did a double-take.

Her expression went from confused, to surprised, to shocked, to angry, to flat out crazy in a matter of seconds.

She flew at Dr. Eggman, hammer in hand.

Knuckles leapt forward and caught her just as she was about to land the first blow. He held her back, straining slightly. She was _strong_.

"Where did he go?" Tails murmured to himself, walking to the smoking machine and examining it closely. "What did you build this for?"

"It doesn't look like much," Rouge remarked, standing beside him, Cream leaning against her and sobbing quietly with Cheese on her shoulder.

"This is Eggman you're talking about. You can just never tell with that guy." Knuckles half-pulled, half-dragged Amy over to them. "Though I doubt its effects were intentional."

"Then what is it?" Tails wondered, looking behind him. "Eggman?"

The space behind them was empty. He had snuck off while they'd had their backs turned.

Knuckles swore, and Amy started banging the ground with her hammer repeatedly.

And meanwhile, in a whole new world, eyes opened and blinked.

Ruby red eyes.

End of Chapter One.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"…Ouch…Anyone get the number of that truck that hit me…?" Sonic sat up, rubbing his head gingerly. What had happened? One minute he'd been saving Cream and Cheese, the next… He wasn't quite sure what had happened next, actually.

_Well,_ he thought, _Guess I'd better find out._

He looked up.

And promptly flew out of the way as a bright light came hurtling towards him.

_Hang on…_

He looked down this time.

Gold met his eyes. A bright, shining gold. There was only one type of gold he knew that shined like that…

"Well," he murmured, "Isn't _this_ a surprise."

Somehow, he'd gone Super Sonic.

It was then that he noticed all the people staring at him like he was some kind of alien or something.

He frowned. They weren't of any species he knew of, though they all looked sort of like Dr. Eggman, minus the red nose and roundness. Oh, and they certainly didn't have his…_Unique_ fashion sense. They were gazing up at him in fear. Did they think he was going to attack them or something?

_Well, I've always wondered where Eggman came from._

Two of the strange creatures suddenly ran forward.

"What is that thing?" One of them wondered. The other one shrugged.

"Who knows? But it looks like a flying lightbulb." He joked. The first one rolled his eyes.

"Come on. Won't the boss be interested in _this_."

Suddenly, a net fell on top of Sonic and began pulling him towards the ground. He looked down in surprise, and quickly tore his way free and flew up a bit higher. More nets were thrown at him but he evaded them all.

And then he noticed the _highway_.

The officers jumped to the side, startled, as a burst of gold light shot past them and out of sight. They all stood there for a minute, stunned, but soon regained their bearings, hopped back in their cars, and tore after him.

---

"Hi, uh, Commander? We got a…Umm…"

"What? I'm busy."

"Well sir, it, uh, appears to be, uh…"

"What?"

"Umm…"

"What is it, General?" In a dangerous voice.

"Well, sir…it appears to be…a big, glowing hedgehog, sir." _Is this even worth my job?_

Apparently it was, as the Commander relaxed back in his chair with a smile on his face.

_I finally have you sighted, hedgehog._

---

Sonic smiled lightly to himself as he ran along the road. Being Super meant being able to fly, but running in this form was just as cool. And this world wasn't such a bad place to run. There weren't many cars on the highway at this time of night, and the road just stretched on and on. Of course, he'd always love the grassy fields, but he needed a change every now and then.

As the road carried him farther away from the intersection he'd woken up in, his mind returned to the situation. What had happened, back at the base? Where were his friends, and were they alright? How had he gone Super in the first place, if there were no Chaos Emeralds nearby to draw energy from?

_I guess Chaos Control must have sent me here. I travelled through space…Did I travel through time, too? Am I the only one here? Are all the others…Gone?_

A sound caught his ears, and he glanced behind him. About six racecars were hot on his tail.

He smirked. _Guess I'll find out after the race then._

---

"Got anything yet, Tails?" Amy asked, walking into his workshop with some food for everyone. After the initial shock had worn off, they had come here to try to calm down a bit and find their missing friend. So far it seemed to be working.

"Not yet, no." Tails accepted his sandwich with a nod. Next to him, Rouge refused hers and only took a cup of coffee. They had been working for an hour trying to figure out what the machine's original use was, but it seemed the data had somehow been deleted.

Amy looked at Rouge. "I'm surprised you're helping." The bat shrugged.

"He took _my_ Chaos Emeralds with him. Do you expect me to go looking for some other jewel?"

"Yes actually." Knuckles strode into the room and sat down on a chair he had brought with him. The workshop was so cluttered with gadgets and blueprints, there was hardly any room left.

Rouge scoffed at him. "Not likely. _Your_ emerald lost its charm ages ago."

"Come to think of it Knuckles, why aren't you on Angel Island?" Tails asked. "You did kinda appear out of nowhere."

"_We're going to crash Tails!" Amy cried as the Tornado veered towards a huge rock._

"_I know!" He yelled back. They shut their eyes, waiting for the inevitable-_

_And a fist swung out of nowhere, shattering the rock like glass and allowing the plane to land safely._

_Tails and Amy turned to look at their savior, and blinked in surprise._

"_Knuckles!"_

He shrugged. "I felt a disturbance of Chaos Energy. The Chaotix can handle things on the Island."

It was true. The Chaotix, namely Vector, Espio and Charmy, were the world's worst detectives, and some of the world's greatest heroes. They had certainly done their fair share of day-saving, and were a few of the group's best allies.

Knuckles continued. "It looks like I was right about the disturbance after that whole fiasco, though I never thought it could get so out of control like _that_…" He was talking now more to himself than everyone else, but Rouge got the gist of it. She grabbed him and held him up to eye level.

"So you're telling me that I just spent an entire hour hacking into _Doctor Eggman's _database and looking for a hidden file while _you_ knew all along _what had _HAPPENED?!" With every word of emphasis, Knuckles' head gained a new bump the size of an egg. Tails and Amy gently pulled her off of him, and looked at Knuckles for an explanation. He rubbed his head.

"Well, I thought you guys were looking for the machine's original use, not what actually happened. Otherwise, yeah, I have a pretty good theory."

"Well, then, what are you _waiting for, _echidna?" Rouge hissed. They all tried to move away from her, but Tails and Amy had to keep a hold on her arms and Knuckles was stuck on the chair. Moments passed till Knuckles spoke.

"Well, it's this centuries-old Chaos Theory of my clan, that Chaos Energy can not only be used as a power source, but also on its own in different forms."

"Like?" Tails asked eagerly, wanting to know more. He'd always been fascinated by the Chaos Emeralds, ever since learning about them on his earlier adventures with Sonic.

"Like Chaos Control."

_They stared in amazement as the tower was engulfed in a white light. It started heading towards them, but somehow they didn't feel afraid._

"_What's that?" Amy wondered aloud as it came closer, blinding them._

"_It used to be Chaos Control." She heard Knuckles murmur just before they were engulfed._

"Chaos Control? What's that? I think I've heard of it before…" Rouge asked, now fully listening. Knuckles continued.

"Chaos Control is just that, controlling Chaos Energy in different ways. For example, it could be used as an attack, or as a shield. But it's most famous use was that of controlling space and time."

"Seriously?" Tails asked, excited. "How?"

"I was getting to that," Knuckles replied. "Now… the theory says that everything that exists contains Chaos Energy. Me, you, this house, everything. Even outer space is filled with it. Chaos Control, theoretically, allows you to dissolve all your atoms as Chaos Energy particles and stream them through the Chaos Energy around us to assimilate in a new location, or even another time period. That's how all forms of Chaos Control work-using a Chaos Emerald to influence the Energy particles already present. That's also how Sonic goes Super-he gathers the Chaos Energy around him using the Chaos Emeralds."

"Wow," Amy and Rouge said, astonished. Tails, however, frowned.

"What do you mean by 'theoretically'?" He asked.

"Well, only special people like Sonic, who have copious amounts of Chaos Energy inside them, can actually do all this. The theory itself was thought up by Chaos Energy scientists from centuries ago. Even they couldn't be sure of it, it just made the most sense to them. Sonic already knows about all this," he quickly added for Tails' unasked question. "He asked me about it once because he wanted to know why he can go Super while the rest of us can't."

"Ah…"

---

Sonic watched as one of the cars pulled up beside him and a man got out. He didn't seem very exciting, but Sonic decided to give him a chance. The man raised a hand in greeting.

"Hi there!" He said. Sonic remained silent. "You're a hard hog to keep up with. Hey, hold on!" as Sonic turned to leave. "We don't get such fast company very often. In fact, I'm glad you showed up. This place is _way_ too peaceful. Over the last twelve months I've only made one arrest."

Sonic listened to his story, but opted for keeping quiet. Until he understood this world a little more, the less these people knew of him, the better. However, he still smirked as the guy talked about how annoyingly slow other people seemed to be around here. This seemed to get the man's attention.

"You never had a chance." The man said. "Of course it's our own fault. This town's still safe mainly because of us. You see, we're the high-speed pursuit unit, the S-Team. And I'm the leader of the team. They call me the highway star, so even if you think you're the fastest thing around…think again."

Behind him, the other cars' engines started up. Before Sonic knew it, the chase was on. Behind him, the leader smirked.

_Run fast, little hedgehog. I want to be the one to catch you._

---

From a nearby building, two pairs of eyes watched the chase. One pair was green, and the other red. The blue streak quickly vanished from their view, but they did not follow it. A small silence settled over the scene, and then the red-eyed one spoke.

"Is he the one?

The green-eyed figure would have grinned, but no one would have seen it in the darkness.

"Yes. Seek him out; destroy him, and your purpose will have been fulfilled."

Red eyes nodded. And, like ghosts, the figures vanished as though they had never existed.

End of Chapter Two

And there's the second chapter. Just so you know, the Chaos Theory in this chapter is something out of my mind. I don't know how Chaos Control actually works. It's going to come up again later on in the story, but don't worry if you don't fully understand it. You should get the general idea. I also added in the flashbacks because the show never did explain them.

Also, I will not be putting Chris in this story. Or maybe I'll just make him some random bystander or something, if I feel like being annoying XD. Sam also won't really come up much. We can do without him.

Thank you!


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Sonic sighed, content, as he looked out over the vast city below him. The race had been over pretty quickly, but at least he now had something to keep him from getting too bored. He still didn't know where he was though, and at this rate he'd never figure anything out.

"Boom!"

Sonic looked up and was dazzled by a large display of colorful fireworks lighting up the sky like day. A celebration of some sort. He smiled and closed his eyes for a moment.

Suddenly, the sound of choppers shook him out of his reverie. Four helicopters had given chase.

He sighed again, annoyed. _Don't these guys ever sleep?_ He started flying towards the buildings, but they kept close on his tail. He noticed they were of different design from the previous ones-these ones had two sets of chopper blades and were painted olive green. On the side, the word GUN was written in white. And it looked like they meant business.

Sonic frowned and started pouring on his speed. He didn't know why, but something told him he didn't want to mess with these guys. Yet however faster he went they remained close behind. He turned towards the forest.

Wherever he went, they seemed to be right on his tail. It was as if they had some sort of tracer on him, or knew exactly where he was going… Or had followed him enough to know where to go…

Sonic was flying over a lake when it happened. A large net was thrown onto him, and it slowly started dragging him back towards the choppers. No matter how hard he struggled against it, he could not break free.

_That's strange. It's just a net… Right?_

He tried using Chaos Energy. The moment it touched the net, it vanished. He frowned, and tried again and again, to no avail. Sonic was now tiring very quickly. He shot one last bolt of energy at the net, but this time it rebounded back at him.

The last thing he saw was the inside of the helicopter, and a bunch of smiling humans.

"Uh, Commander? We caught that hedgehog…"

"Already? That was fast."

"We used that special net you had made."

"But it was still too fast… I don't like it. He'd never let himself be captured like that…"

"Sir?"

"Hm? Oh, right, you're that new recruit."

"Um… Yes, sir."

The Commander smirked.

"Tell me, rookie… have you ever heard about Project: Shadow?"

Sonic opened his eyes.

He was greeted by a metallic grey ceiling and several strange figures hovering just barely within his peripheral range. When he tried to move, he found his body unwilling to respond. Then the voices came.

"He's woken up!"

"Sh! He can hear us!"

"The Commander was right; his eyes are red!"

"Quick, take notes! What will he do?"

"Sh!"

Sonic frowned. Where was he? Who were these people, and what did they want with him? He struggled against the bonds holding him down, to no avail. From somewhere behind his head, there was a hiss.

Words were exchanged, but spoken low enough so that he couldn't hear what they were talking about. Most of the figures around him left the room… Except for one.

A man walked forward until he was directly in Sonic's field of vision, smirking. Sonic disliked him immediately. They glared at each other.

The man spoke.

"It's been a while, hasn't it? You have no idea how much trouble you've put me through, hedgehog."

_Huh?_ Sonic wondered. _What's he talking about? I don't know this guy… _The man continued talking.

"Where have you been hiding? We've done worldwide searches for you, yet you always seem to slip right through our grasp. But here you are now." He leaned a bit closer to Sonic's face. "What's wrong? You haven't said a word, hedgehog." Another smirk. "Yes, it is quite humiliating, being captured by me, isn't it?"

Sonic could take it no longer. "I don't know what you're talking about," he spat. "Who are you, and what do you want with me?"

"I feel insulted, Project." The stranger replied in mock offence. "You ought to know me by now. After all…" He stood straight again, walking to a control panel, and turning his head to look at Sonic.

"Fifty years is a rather long time to get acquainted, is it not?"

Red eyes watched the camera mounted up on the wall closely. The nearer he got to his target, the higher the security became. He could not afford to have his cover blown. Not yet.

The camera turned, now concentrating on another point in the corridor, and the figure dashed out from behind the corner, turning to the opposite direction. To an observer, he was the ultimate spy, a picture of pure dedication and focus to his mission.

But his mind was as far away as could possibly be.

_Why am I doing this?_ He wondered, frowning. Another camera was in his path._ What does _**he**_ have in mind? How will this accomplish my purpose? And more importantly… What does he have to gain from all of this? I am of no consequence to him… Am I?_

A shrill scream interrupted his train of thought, and he forced his mind to return to the task at hand. Such thoughts could wait. This could not.

He hurried on.

Sonic panted as the man flicked the switch again, turning off the current of electricity. He strode back to the table the golden hedgehog was being pinned to, looking angry.

"I will ask again, Project. Where have you hidden the Chaos Emeralds?"

"I don't know where they are!" Sonic burst out heatedly, but still the man would not listen to him. He merely returned to the control panel. Sonic began thrashing against his bonds again, unwilling to repeat the experience, but just before the switch was turned, his eyes caught a flash of red. Just a flash.

The switch was turned.

And nothing happened.

"Hm?" The man frowned, flicking it repeatedly. Up, down, up, down, but still, no current was released. He started checking the panel for any problems.

Sonic allowed himself to relax a little bit, but his eyes searched for what they had just barely seen before. He didn't even notice anything else had changed until he hovered a bit and rolled over in mid-air to check behind himself. Now realizing that the metal bonds no longer held him in place and weren't much more than scraps of metal on the floor, he quickly flew out of the way of anything else that could capture him again. The man looked up, and his expression swiftly changed from one of surprise to one of anger. He grabbed a small communicator from his pocket.

"Attention all units! I need backup, NOW!"

Sonic grinned happily and tore his way back out of the base.

It was later, as he was gently soaring over the city outskirts and mulling over his escape, when it happened.

He started to fall.

In a jerking, tumbling sort of way, stopping several times and then continuing, but it was a fall. One he had absolutely no control over. He looked down.

A swimming pool greeted his eyes.

"No _way_!" He yelled, trying to regain his flight but failing horribly. With a huge splash, he sank to the bottom. There he stayed for a few moments, absorbing what had happened, then realized just where he was.

His first attempts to escape his watery surroundings would have brought tears of laughter to Knuckles' eyes. He tried jumping, 'swimming', running and even flapping his hands like a bird. Then finally, with a burst of energy, he propelled himself out of the pool using his Super abilities. Sighing in relief, he raised his eyes to level with one of the windows of the house. And froze.

A pair of dark blue eyes met his own, and a small boy pulled back the curtain to get a better view. He had honey-golden hair and a curious expression on his face. Behind him, Sonic saw the name 'Chris' written on the wall above a mirror.

Sonic turned tail and sped out of the area as fast as hedgehogly possible. He didn't know why, but instinct told him that this kid was a bigger danger than that mysterious 'GUN' could ever be. And he always listened to his instincts.

A pair of red eyes watched him go. The figure didn't know why the hedgehog was to be destroyed, but the fact he had already figured out that this one human in particular was to be avoided at all costs interested him.

And there would be more surprises along the way.

End of Chapter Three

Sorry this one took so long. And if you freaked out when Chris appeared, well, so did I after I realized what my hands had written. Everything is now back under control.

I hope you're not getting confused between the two pairs of red eyes. If you are, just tell me. We should get to the (not so) secret identity soon though, so don't worry.

Thank you!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

"Authorities are still attempting to locate this strange being, although no sightings have been reported since the incident late last night. This picture by an amateur photographer on the scene shows what appears to be a glowing yellow porcupine floating several feet off the ground. The Station Square Police Department kindly requests that citizens report any information they may have on the whereabouts of this unusual creature. Scarlet Garcia, Station Square News Network."

_Porcupine?_

Sonic fumed quietly as he watched the news report from a tree in front of the electronics shop. The broadcast had attracted quite a crowd (much to the joy of the shopkeeper), who were now pushing and shoving to get a good glimpse of the picture, unaware that the real thing sat in a tree branch right above their heads. Sonic focused on the screen as well. _I don't look anything like a porcupine!_

All the photograph really showed was a spiky ball of light with small streaks of red heading for the highway. In his opinion, it didn't look like much of anything at all. _Rat, rodent, porcupine…I hate to admit it, but Knux must be the only person there is who calls me a hedgehog!_

"You know, _I_ heard that it was an illegal escaped science experiment!"

"Well, _I_ heard it was an alien scouting the territory to see if we are worth invading!"

_Great. I hate rumors. They're never true._

"Well, _I_ found out it was an ordinary person that got bitten by a radioactive porcupine and mutated!"

"_Hedgehog!_"

The group stopped talking, surprised, and looked up at the tree, but Sonic was long gone by then, just barely realizing in time that he'd hissed the word aloud.

oOo

_So._ Sonic landed on top of a tall skyscraper, watching the tiny humans far down below him going about their business. _What now?_

A breeze swept by, ruffling his quills, and he closed his eyes. _At least that doesn't change…_

As the wind died down a bit, he looked up at a few clouds passing by and his thoughts turned to his friends. He had been here about two days now; how were they doing without him?

He wished he knew.

oOo

"Do you really think the Master Emerald can help us?" Amy called over the roar of the Tornado's engine as they soared high above the ocean.

"Maybe! It's the only thing I can think of!" Tails shouted back. On the wing, Knuckles' eyes searched the ground for his island. Up ahead, Rouge suddenly swerved around and came to fly by next to them.

"I found it! Start descending!" She yelled through the sudden rush of wind. Tails nodded as the island slowly started coming into view, and they flew towards it.

oOo

Sonic had started falling again, and he wasn't sure whether to be grateful or terrified that there was now solid ground and a few trees below him instead of a swimming pool. In the same way as before, he'd fall a few feet, stop suddenly, jerk upwards a bit, then resume falling again. A few times, he was flung to a side. And all the time, the ground grew nearer and nearer…

One last jerk had him a foot off the ground, and he unceremoniously crashed down, landing hard on his back. He lay there for a minute, perplexed, and then pushed himself to his feet, groaning. His head spun, and he felt exhausted.

_What's going on here? Flying has never been a problem; I didn't even realize I was doing it the first few times! Why… Huh?_

Turning his head, Sonic found he had attracted quite a large audience during his spectacle. Standing just ahead of the crowd, several policemen also stared at him in astonishment. Everyone was silent, but Sonic was racking his brains and looking for an escape. Maybe landing in a park a day after seeing fireworks in the sky _wasn't _a very good thing after all.

Realizing that the people were beginning to rouse themselves out of their shock, he thought quickly.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed one of the policemen reaching for his communicator.

_Uh-oh._

Raising his arms on either side, he gave a smile and proclaimed, "Um, Ta-da?" and the crowd gasped. Inwardly, however, Sonic groaned.

_That definitely could have been more impressive._

But before he could think of anything else to say, choppers sounded from behind him.

_Not again…_

oOo

Knuckles froze, jaws wide open in horror. Beside him, all the other members of the group stiffened, awaiting the disastrous rage they knew would soon arrive fully flanked with brute strength.

It hadn't been so apparent from the air when they'd landed on Angel Island. All was still and quiet, just as it should be. They'd come straight to the shrine, anxious to get their friend back.

It was right about then when Knuckles had frozen with his jaws wide open in horror.

The Master Emerald was gone.

And Angel Island floated cheerfully among the waves as he uprooted every tree and threw aside every boulder to recover it.

oOo

Sonic ran.

Ran for his _life_.

In all honesty, he'd never really run before while still in Super form.

Well, okay, so that wasn't entirely true. He actually loved running like this, able to go at least twice, no, _thrice_ as fast as he could normally manage. And in the midst of fighting giant robots and evil demigods and whatnot, he tried to do it as often as possible. Which wasn't very often, but that was not the point.

The point was, when he was Super, he ran so fast that even _he_ could barely see where he was going, and so relied largely on his ability to fly to get himself out of tricky situations.

Also, if he really _had_ to run for his life while in Super form, then he wouldn't be running in the first place.

The fact that he'd already nearly crashed into several buildings, cars and pedestrians was _not_ helping.

And, for some unfathomable reason, he couldn't gain any height.

So, he kept on running.

And running.

…And running.

_What is up with these guys? Or more importantly, what is up with __**me**__?_

Above him, the sky had begun to darken again. People were beginning to return home, leaving the streets empty and quiet. The only sounds were the helicopter blades and Sonic's own running feet. He couldn't go very fast for fear of crashing into something, and was hoping to soon run into a forest or any place to hide. It wasn't his usual style, but at the moment he was too freaked out to opt for anything else.

Suddenly, the only noise he could hear was his own. Slowing down slightly, he risked a glance behind himself. The choppers had vanished.

A frown touched his face. The entire situation was weird enough without trying to figure these people out. Sonic was used to strange things happening, but right then he just wanted to find a nice, cozy place to curl up and pretend this was all a big, crazy dream, that he'd wake up soon and forget all about it.

So lost in his thoughts, he almost didn't notice the beam of yellow light shooting towards him until the very last second. Avoiding it cost him his grace, as he landed in a heap a few feet away, but where he had previously been now sported a large scorch mark on the ground. He stared at it, dumbfounded for a few moments, before becoming aware of several more headed his way. He rolled out of the way and got to his feet, looking around for his attacker.

Night had completely fallen now, and many of the buildings nearby looked dark and uninhabited. It occurred to Sonic how he must be shining like a beacon for his unknown assailant, but every time he tried to run out of the small area to find somewhere with more light, he was confronted with more bolts of energy.

The strangest part was that the energy felt rather familiar to him.

In trying to place where he might have felt it before, his eyes caught a flash of red on the roof of a small shop. Just a flash.

He froze.

The attacks, stopped, and their eyes met. The one on the rooftop smirked, while Sonic's hands clenched. The other leapt like a cat off the rooftop, so they stood face to face. There was only silence.

"It is an honor to meet you at last, hedgehog." Sonic started as he drew himself up to full height and crossed his arms. The smirk never left his face.

"I am Shadow. Shadow the hedgehog."

End of Chapter Four

…Yes. You are supposed to believe that this (read: horrendous) chapter took…How long has it been? Eight months? I've lost track of time.

…I suppose I should apologize for that.

I promise, I'll try to not take another year or so. And hopefully, we'll get a bit more of a plot going here, okay? Cool.

Also, in previous chapters there should have been dashes between scene changes. Some of you may not know about this as this site seems to not understand the need for such a clarification, so I have decided to start using that 'oOo' thing you probably saw in this chapter. I might go back and do the same to the other chapters.

Finally, I should probably tell you all that I am, in fact, a rabid Shadow fangirl, so that last paragraph or so may seem a little sketchy because I was so busy squeeing my head off.

But I'm rambling now, so I'll stop.

Thank you!


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

The GUN Commander scowled darkly as he ordered the choppers back to base. Just what in the world was going on here? One second, they'd been hot on the tail of their recently escaped prisoner, the next there'd been not one, not two, but _three_ spots of Chaos Energy detected by GUN's top Chaos Energy Detectors, all in the same area. Two of them were right in front of each other, while the third stood on a building nearby. As he watched, it suddenly vanished from sight, but knowing the choppers sent out to retrieve the target wouldn't be enough for double its power, he chose to retreat instead of apprehending it.

He could wait.

oOo

"Shadow, huh?" Sonic was back to himself again, stretching his arms over his head in preparation for battle. "Suits you, I almost didn't see ya there. So, what's your story?" The black hedgehog frowned.

"Story?"

"Yeah, you know, most people who are out to kill me usually have some kind of reason for it, and often it's this horrendous traumatic experience or whatever. What's yours?"

oOo

On top of a building next to them, green eyes watched as the battle began. Their owner had done what he could to ensure that GUN didn't interfere with his charge's mission, even if it meant revealing himself to their monitors for a few minutes. The rapid departure of their helicopters meant he'd succeeded in intimidating them, but that was not important right now.

No, what was most important was the death of Sonic the Hedgehog. He knew that as long as this blue creature existed, no matter in what dimension, their paths would cross eventually, and he would be halted in his plans.

He'd make sure the hedgehog was dead long before that happened.

oOo

Sonic ducked and rolled out of the way, a split second before the wall behind him crumbled to dust. His adversary continued to shoot bolts of gold light at him, destroying everything in their path, and just barely missing the yellow hedgehog.

_Wow, he's fast,_ Sonic thought as he ran vertically up a wall, before pushing himself off of it and spindashing the other. _Can't catch me though!_

Shadow frowned as he was shoved into some nearby crates from the force of the attack. _I have to change tactics._ Gathering his energy, he disappeared.

Sonic stopped running, surprise evident on his face, and looked around wildly. _Where'd he go?_ He failed to notice the flash of light behind him, and a kick sent him sprawling onto the floor. He hardly had enough time to pick himself up before a strong uppercut threw him into the wall. When he opened his eyes again, Shadow was standing in front of him, holding something that was infinitely familiar to the hedgehog.

The Green Chaos Emerald glowed softly in the dim light.

"It all starts with this," Shadow murmured, holding it up. "A jewel containing the ultimate power!"

Sonic stared at it for all of a second before lunging at his assailant. Just before he reached him, however, Shadow started to glow.

"Chaos Control!"

He vanished again.

Sonic froze, keeping an eye on his surroundings. His mind was reeling.

_He can perform Chaos Control with only one Emerald? Is that even possible?_ He pivoted on one foot, still searching for the hedgehog. _So that's why he's moving so fast. It's not his speed; he's using the Chaos Emerald to warp! _Another thought entered his mind._ Could I use that ability to get back home?_

He felt the energy coming up from behind him, a second too late, and was knocked off his feet and out of the alleyway. The black the red hedgehog now stood on a lamp post with perfect balance, watching him and raising his hand, which glowed.

Sonic prepared to dodge the attack, when suddenly the wailing sirens of police cars made themselves known. Shadow looked behind himself, and then smirked and the energy in his hand dissipated. He looked at Sonic.

"I have a feeling we will meet again, hedgehog," he said, and held up the Emerald. "Chaos Control!"

Sonic had to shield his eyes from the bright flash that followed, but he didn't need to look up again to know the other hedgehog was gone. His attention was instead directed at the cars that had stopped just in front of him. Wanting to avoid confrontation at the moment, he turned and ran.

oOo

It took them two hours to do it, but eventually Knuckles was calmed down enough to attempt rational thought concerning the whereabouts of the Master Emerald. With his eyes closed and sitting at the bottom of the steps to the shrine, he reached out with his mind, carefully searching for its signature, while Rouge scouted out the island for any signs of intruders and Tails fiddled with his Emerald Detector. Eventually, amethyst eyes opened once more and Knuckles stretched his legs.

"Well?" Amy asked expectantly. Tails looked at him as well.

"It's not here." Was the simple reply. Amy growled.

"Wow, it took you twenty minutes to figure that out? What have you been doing all this time?" She snapped heatedly. Tails put a hand on her shoulder while Knuckles just glared at her.

"Amy, calm down." The fox turned to Knuckles. "What do you mean, not here?"

"That's just it." He replied. "I can't sense it anywhere – not on the island, not in the world. It's just… Gone. It didn't leave a trail behind."

"Nothing at all?"

"No." The echidna's hands clenched at the thought.

A rustle of leaves sounded the arrival of Rouge. Behind her strode a companion they were all very familiar with. Knuckles stepped forward immediately.

"What happened? Where's the Master Emerald?"

Espio regarded him coolly.

oOo

Sonic's head snapped up as he ran from the alleyway. That feeling… He knew it well. Changing his direction he headed for it. This one was different, and he would not allow Shadow to find any more Emeralds than he already had.

oOo

"I don't know," the purple chameleon answered truthfully. Everyone else watched him. "We were guarding the Master Emerald when we heard some kind of noise – it sounded like someone was shouting, but we couldn't make out any words. Charmy ran into the forest to check it out, and Vector ran after him. I stayed with the Master Emerald, but it suddenly started to glow so brightly that I couldn't see anything. When the light faded, it was gone. I didn't know what to do, so I went looking for them, and then she found me." He gestured to Rouge.

"Hmm…" Tails put his hand on his chin, looking thoughtful. Everyone turned to him. "I think it's safe to assume that the Master Emerald is in the same place as the Chaos Emeralds. Perhaps the shouting you guys heard was us breaking into Eggman's base."

"What are you talking about?" Espio asked, confused. The group explained about the disappearance of Sonic and the Chaos Emeralds, and Amy looked at Tails.

"But how could they have heard us all the way in the base?" She asked.

"Well, I think that when the Chaos Emeralds vanished, the Master Emerald followed them by opening its own portal to their location so that it was also involved in the Chaos Control," Tails explained. "Knuckles mentioned earlier that the Chaos Control seemed a lot more, well, out of control than it should have – that may have been due to the Master Emerald's own portal. It probably did that because, like he said, it isn't in this world anymore. It must have gone somewhere else – like another dimension, or maybe even another time period." There was silence as everyone absorbed this new information.

And then Knuckles punched a nearby tree.

"Great," he muttered. "Sonic, the Chaos Emeralds, and the Master Emerald. For once, I don't want to be anywhere near when he comes back. Heaven knows what Chaos he'll bring with him."

oOo

Sonic wasn't sure how, but Shadow seemed to have anticipated his attack right before he launched it, as the black hedgehog managed to dodge his punch without even looking over his shoulder. The two hedgehogs were at a construction site, closer to the edge of the city, and dawn was breaking on the east horizon. Sonic's 'Emerald Sense,' as he'd dubbed it, was going crazy, and something told him that the other hedgehog was here for the same reason he was. They traded punches, kicks, spindashes and various Chaos-related attacks, and were still matched blow for blow. Then, something happened.

One of the excavators at the site began to glow. Then, as if it had a mind of its own, it drove in between Sonic and Shadow just as they were preparing for their next attack. They jumped out of the way and watched as it began to rampage upon the constructions materials and machines lying around.

"Wow," Sonic commented dryly. "It must really hate its job."

"Hmph." Shadow scanned the deserted lot. Sonic waited, then frowned when the other didn't attack. Something clicked in his mind, a phrase that stood out in a long forgotten lecture of Tails'.

_Chaos Emeralds make machines go haywire._

He ran after the excavator as it began tearing down the street.

oOo

Green eyes frowned. He'd told Shadow that obtaining all the Chaos Emeralds was important, but it was now obvious that Sonic the Hedgehog also had an aptitude for finding them. This would make things… Difficult. He waited for a few moments.

Seemingly out of thin air, another form appeared beside the first. This apparition looked exactly like the one before it. They turned to each other.

"Shadow will fail," the second whispered, so quietly its voice was almost lost to the wind. The first nodded, and its copy vanished as mysteriously as it had come, and suddenly everything was quiet. Nothing moved or breathed, and the figure observed a bird, frozen in flight just in front of him. He made his way to where Shadow's still form ran alongside the excavator and murmured in his ear, very slowly, "This mission is futile. There is a Chaos Emerald on Prison Island; go and retrieve it. This is an opponent like none you have ever faced before." He then crept back into the shadows of a nearby building, and watched as time resumed and his charge stopped, while the yellow hedgehog continued to chase after the excavator. Shadow looked around, and then took out his green Chaos Emerald with a determined expression on his face.

Satisfied, Mephiles the Dark allowed himself to disappear so he could speak with his past self about Shadow's mission.

oOo

Sonic leaped onto the top of the excavator and peered through one of the windows. There it sat, in all its splendor; the cyan-colored Chaos Emerald, Sonic's personal favorite. He grabbed it and jumped down, prompting the machine to return to its original inanimate state, and then frowned again when he realized that Shadow wasn't nearby. He looked around.

Shadow stood not too far away, holding up his Chaos Emerald, which was glowing. Sonic froze, realizing what his counterpart was about to do, and lunged at him.

"Chaos Control!"

End of Chapter Five

…Okay. When I said I would try not to take so long with this chapter, I was serious. I apologize, and will proceed to cite exams, traveling, and moving house as my reasons.

...Forgive me? Pwease? *Insert puppy dog eyes* Pwetty pwetty pwease?

On another note, it's my birthday today! ^_^ And GothicHalfa1 gets a slice of ice cream cake for correctly guessing the green-eyed Mephiles. Meanwhile, I should probably take this opportunity to thank all the other wonderful reviewers and people who are reading this story for… Well… Reading! XD Thanks, you guys, especially if you decided to stick with me for this long.

I promise I'll try my very hardest to get the next chapter up quickly.

Thank you!


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

The depths of the White Jungle were calm, serene. Birds chirped in tall trees, and a river flowed nearby which provided refreshment to the exotic wildlife going about its daily business, hardly caring about the secrets hidden deep within the small island. Occasionally, strange, loud aircraft would soar overhead and armed soldiers would sprint through the jungle, but otherwise nothing would disturb the jungle's tranquility.

Until now.

With a burst of light, two figures appeared in the middle of the jungle. They landed unceremoniously on the ground, groaning and startling a couple of nearby birds into flight. As the light faded away, one of them got to his feet, his hand glowing.

Shadow took in his surroundings, satisfied that he had arrived at his destination with no trouble. The thought was quickly shaken away however, when he noticed his companion. Sonic lay on the ground, snoring and certainly sound asleep; Shadow decided he must be drained from the sudden usage of Chaos Control. Resisting the urge to kick him, the black hedgehog quickly scanned him, looking for the light blue Chaos Emerald instead. Not in his shoes… his gloves… there weren't a lot of places to hide it, really, and Shadow was starting to wonder if the hedgehog had somehow dropped it during the trip when he felt a trickle of energy seemingly emanating from yellow quills.

A sudden burst of what felt like electricity immediately threw Shadow back. He wasn't fooled; he knew it had been Chaos Energy. But why was the Emerald keeping him at bay?

Sonic stirred slightly in his sleep, and Shadow stood up again. Not wishing to repeat the experience, much less be present for the yellow hedgehog's waking, he turned and ran into the forest. There was a trail here, one only he could see, and he was determined to follow it.

Red eyes slowly forced themselves open, and Sonic sat up, holding his head. For a second, he wondered why he was so dizzy, but the thought was fleeting as the events of the day came crashing back into him. He stood up, still tired, and looked around. Then he sped off to find his doppelganger.

oOo

The highly trained soldiers and state-of-the-art security guarding the fortress completely failed to notice the intruder slipping into the complex; Shadow found the task so easy he tempted a few passing soldiers and even a robot or two with some rocks he found, if only to see just how pathetic GUN's forces could be. Leaving them behind, the black hedgehog began to search for a control room of some sort to get the information he needed. It took him awhile, but eventually he found an empty terminal which he could use to access GUN's database. Acquiring the location of what he sought, he shut the computer down and continued sneaking through the building, as quickly as he could.

This was not the black hedgehog's first time on the island; his last visit had lasted five decades, and he did not wish to remain here longer then absolutely necessary.

oOo

It was a simple room that Shadow entered. The walls were metallic grey, and the dim light would have been inadequate for any other person to view the small black box in the center of the room.

For his eyes, it was as bright as the sun.

He crept to deeper into the room. The security cameras had been shut down in advance, and the invisible laser grid remained invisible to anyone with ordinary eyesight. All too soon, Shadow was kneeling beside the box, now dealing with the small electric lock.

oOo

A soldier stared at the screen for a full minute. On it, a glowing golden ball of energy had stopped to look at the massive fortress. It shimmered slightly, and the soldier didn't believe what he was seeing until several of his colleagues came to check up on him. Their gasps of surprise jolted him back into action. A few buttons were pressed on the keyboard under the monitor.

"Hi, uh, Commander?"

oOo

Alarms were blaring. Shadow stood, Emerald in hand. It was red; its warm, familiar glow put Shadow's ruby-colored eyes to shame. He stared at it thoughtfully.

Well, since he was already here...

oOo

"I found you, faker!"

Shadow had been about to teleport off the island, feeling rather satisfied with himself. He wouldn't have to deal with the military for a while, and that gave him more time to find Chaos Emeralds and plot out his own slice of vengeance amid Mephiles' scheme. It was with this in mind that he raised the Emerald high above his head…

…and then that horrendously cheerful voice had cut through his thoughts.

He scowled, putting away the Emerald again and glaring at the new arrival.

"Faker? I think you're the fake hedgehog around here." Shadow jumped up to a tree branch to avoid the spindash aiming for him. "You're comparing yourself to me? You're not even good enough to be my fake!" He charged up the Chaos Energy in the palm of his hand.

"I'll make you eat those words!" Sonic cried, launching himself at the black hedgehog.

oOo

Personnel waiting to be evacuated from Prison Island via helicopters were taken by surprise when two hedgehogs suddenly burst from the nearby foliage, throwing punches and kicks and insults and appearing generally unaware of the fifty or so rifles that had automatically shifted focus on them. The GUN Commander, who'd been busy ensuring that the island was evacuated safely and completely, now turned an interesting shade of purple as he watched his sworn enemy and prisoner of less than two days ago do battle. His men awaited orders; a few glanced at their watches anxiously. He growled.

"Resume evacuation; try not to make too much noise."

They were quick to oblige.

oOo

"Hey, where's everybody going?" Sonic asked, noticing the rapidly diminishing lines of soldiers as they were airlifted off the island. Shadow smirked and took advantage of the distraction, lunging for his head. He missed by millimeters.

"Away, of course. You should, too." So saying, he looked to his left, in the general direction of the fortress. The last of the helicopters began its ascent. "Those explosives should go off any second now."

"Wait – explosives?" Sonic was stunned.

Without replying, Shadow stepped back and grinned, holding up his green Chaos Emerald. As he shouted those two famous words, Sonic darted forward-

His hand grasped at thin air.

And then he was alone.

A moment later he'd checked every inch of the island looking for choppers, people, and even boats. Returning to his previous spot, he tried to lift himself, take off, fly – something that had once come so easily, so _naturally_ to him…

He sighed, swinging himself up to a treetop and scanning what he could see of the island. His emotions were getting out of whack, he wasn't usually like this.

Sonic the Hedgehog did _not_ freak out.

_Of course, Sonic the Hedgehog hasn't gotten much sleep or food over the past few days either,_ he thought. _Man I'm hungry…_ Idly, he wondered how much time he had left.

He shook his head to clear the thought.

A minute later, he stood, jumped to the ground, and shook his legs. He wasn't usually one to sit around and wait, and that wouldn't do him any good in this situation. When sitting, his friends had come to mind, and while he'd had his fair share of solo adventures, Sonic hadn't realized how much he missed them now. It wasn't ever easy to collect all the seven Chaos Emeralds, but he would have appreciated getting back home a little quicker, just this one time…

Hang on a second.

Sonic reached into his quills, searching until his hand grasped and pulled out the blue Emerald he'd snagged from the excavator. It glinted.

Sonic didn't know what Shadow's connection to the Emeralds was. He didn't know how the other harnessed their power so efficiently, using it to complete otherwise impossible feats with ease. He didn't even know why the other hedgehog wanted the Emeralds.

But he did know Chaos Theory.

It had taken Knuckles hours to explain, a good three times and with a lot of whacking him over the head with a stick when his mind wandered, but yes, he knew it. And unless there happened to be a whole clan of echidnas hidden in this messed up heap of a dimension handing out secret clan information to outsiders, he decided to doubt that Shadow could possibly know as much as he did about how they worked.

And if he did, well, right now was _not_ the time to dwell on it. He could actually feel rumbles coming from other parts of the island where the bombs had had a head start.

If Shadow could do it, then why not Sonic?

He raised the Emerald and closed his eyes.

oOo

Shadow had landed in a room made of steel. There was very little décor but for a dark stain on the floor, which he ignored. Leaving the room, he made his way down the hall, tossing the newly acquired Emerald in the air and then catching it with one hand as he entered another room.

This one was larger, circular and with a window dominating most of the walls. Through the window, he could see millions of stars, as well as a very blue, very familiar, planet.

Awaiting him in the observatory, Mephiles the Dark was scrutinizing the same view with the air of a potential buyer examining a new car. His hands were clasped behind his back, and he took no notice of the other hedgehog until Shadow was right behind him – and then suddenly turned and caught the Emerald in mid toss. Shadow remained as impassive as ever. They stood like that for a moment.

Mephiles returned to gazing out of the observatory window while Shadow waited. He inspected the red Emerald carefully.

"Well done in obtaining it, but I am afraid I must inform you that, in eliminating Sonic the hedgehog, you have failed."

Shadow frowned. "There was no way for him to escape that island. It blew up with him on it."

"You have underestimated your foe, Shadow." Mephiles put the Emerald into his quills for safekeeping and moved past him, heading for the door. "Someone like him would be in no danger from simple explosions."

End of Chapter Six

…Okay, this is awkward. I assume I'm supposed to put some kind of explanation here? Maybe school will actually help me out for a change. Does anyone else out there do the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (IBDP)? It's murder. Like, literally. I should be working on my extended essay right now… -.-

Anyway, there's… not much else I can use in my defense. Maybe you can find it in your hearts not to kill (or leave) me?

Also, I own nothing. Been forgetting all about these disclaimer thingies for the past several chapters (do they even do anything? What happens if I don't put them up?), and I'm too lazy to go back and edit all the other chapters. Maybe I'll do it someday… I'll try to actually finish the story first, though.

Thank you!


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I remembered this time! I own nothing.

Chapter 7

He hated water.

He disliked the swishy sound it made. He abhorred the way it mocked the color of his usual fur. He despised how it made his socks droop and his shoes squishy. He detested its ability to weigh him down and stop him from speeding up. He was revolted at how anyone could possibly enjoy spending time anywhere near large bodies of the unnaturally smooth substance that could seep through any crack and spill out of any cup. He didn't understand how-

Okay, that was a bit much. _Still_, Sonic thought, as he clung to the piece of driftwood and stared at the moving liquid barely inches away from his skin, _isn't this a bit much?_

He'd actually thought he was done for. Unable to fly. Trapped on an island in the middle of the ocean. No way off. Freaking out, with his mind at a standstill. He forgot the most obvious thing.

Invincibility. Duh.

Well, it had come through for him anyway. On the horizon, Sonic could still see the smoking remains of Prison Island surrounded by helicopters a couple of hours after the explosion. Military personnel were being lowered to the wreckage now that the threat appeared to have abated. All attention was focused on the incident, but that didn't make him feel any better – he was a sitting duck if the choppers came too close.

Or if they just so happened to notice the bright, glowing beacon situated in the middle of the ocean under the evening sky.

He sighed, looked up, and began to map his location with the emerging stars…

Sonic froze. The sound of whirling blades was suddenly too close for comfort.

There were six of them, closing in on the small piece of driftwood like sharks. The waves began to leap energetically into the air, spurred on by the descending blades and… something else…

There were ships gliding out of the darkness. Sea monsters, as far as he was concerned. Ready to snap him up like dessert.

Frantically, Sonic shoved his hands into the water and paddled. When that didn't get him anywhere, he grasped the driftwood, forced himself to skim the ocean surface with his feet and, taking a deep breath, kicked furiously.

His stunt had the intended effect, propelling him out of the circle of predators and taking them by surprise long enough to have left them behind in his wake. It took them a few moments to process what had happened, and then the chase was on.

And then it wasn't.

Sonic sputtered, coughing out the water he'd inhaled in surprised when he was suddenly lifted out of the water. Rope encircled him, dragging his soaked form into the air. He swayed dangerously close to a ship's hull before realizing that he was still ascending, and quickly too. Through the stinging saltwater coating his eyes, he could make out a blocky object hovering above him. More water had to stream out of his ears before he understood that he was being pulled up to a helicopter.

Sonic stopped struggling.

oOo

Agent Topaz watched as the 'spiky glowing lightbulb', as her comrades were calling it, was heaved on board. It collapsed to the floor, splashing water everywhere and obliging the other agents to whip out their weapons in response. But it seemed their guest had had enough; no action came from it other than the rapid breathing and occasional twitch of an eyelid. It had been subdued.

Topaz gestured for the others to begin restraining the creature. She'd done it. She'd captured the…thing that had piqued the Commander's interest even more than that ancient robot thing they'd found a few years ago, a feat in itself. Oh, that promotion was as good as hers!

And then someone screamed and she found herself falling into the ocean. Since when had they been so close to it…?

oOo

Sonic squeezed water out of his quills as he watched the humans fall into the ocean. They came up for air immediately, and rescue boats were already being prepared to retrieve them. Satisfied that they weren't hurt, he turned to look in the cockpit.

Drift on a patch of wood in the middle of the sea? Never.

Commandeer a helicopter?

Definitely.

_Besides_, he thought as he gripped the joystick and picked out a direction, _the expression on that guy's face was totally worth it!_

oOo

It was just as he was beginning to worry about his fuel that Sonic spotted land. He landed the chopper on a cliff, opened the door and stretched, taking in the nearby forest and lightening sky. Solid ground! Yes! He'd never been so happy to see it before (or maybe he had. He couldn't be quite certain right now). Moving towards the trees he shot off, deep into the forest, and then onwards through a meadow. And then some rocky terrain. And some more trees. And plains. And rocks. And then-

Water.

Again.

Sonic smacked his forehead. This was going to take a while.

oOo

The sun was rising high over Station Square when Sonic found it again. Taking a seat on one of the buildings he stared out at the vast cityscape, swinging his legs over the edge. His ears remained erect, listening for helicopters or any other threats to his renewed peace, but otherwise he was completely relaxed.

It was Sonic's fourth day in this alien world. He'd been around most of the local continent by now, but decided against straying too far from Station Square in case his way back home lay here. Besides, all of the Chaos Emeralds he had seen so far had appeared in this city. _I think. Where else would that faker get them?_

The amber hedgehog leaned back on the roof, gazing at the cloudless sky. _When I first met him, Shadow had the green Emerald. I have no idea where he got it from, but he looked like he knew how to use it. _Sonic shifted slightly, so his arms were now beneath his raised quills. _Does this world have Emeralds of its own? Am I collecting the wrong set?_ He took out the light blue Emerald from the space in his quills. It didn't feel any different from the ones on Mobius. _Would it, though? It's still a Chaos Emerald, wherever it's from…_ He put it away again. _Why is that guy collecting them anyway?_

His eyes closed. _That makes two. There should be five more… Wait. _Sonic sat up suddenly, carefully combing through his more recent memories. _When I found him in that jungle, he was about to Chaos Control. _The scene replayed itself in his mind, and he leapt to his feet._ He was holding the red one, not green! He has two! _He frowned._ Did he have that when I first met him? Or maybe he found it on the island. Was it the reason he went there in the first place? ...How did he know it would be there? Does he know where the others are?_

Sonic placed his feet at the edge of the roof, looking down. With practiced ease he flipped off, allowing gravity to take hold and pull him down. Thirty feet above the ground he curled up, bouncing on the pavement, landing and breaking into a run before anyone in the vicinity knew what had happened. His thoughts were still racing, and he was trying to keep up with them.

_How did a hedgehog end up in a world full of humans? Is he like me – from another world and trying to get home using them?_ Sonic turned a corner and sent newspapers flying as he shot past a news stand.

_He knew who I was before we met. He attacked me. Why?_ He zigzagged through a thick crowd, slowing down until he reached the other side.

_That guy who captured me thought I was someone else. The faker doesn't look anything like me, but how many other hedgehogs are there in this world?_ He vaulted over a truck. There were sirens somewhere.

_There are too many questions and no answers. Does he have them?_ The sirens got closer. Sonic's ears perked up. It didn't sound like the police…

He slowed to a stop next to a jewelry store at the bottom of a building. It was closed, but he noticed movement behind the large window displays. His breath caught in his throat.

Something in the store was emitting Chaos Energy. Trapped in his thoughts, he'd almost missed it.

Ducking into a side alley, Sonic took note of the door and broken lock, and promptly sped into the shop. It was dark inside, though he instantly lit up his surroundings with his vibrant glow. With a sigh, he began making his way through the store, mindful of the glass shards littering the floor. _I bet Shadow can feel it too_, he mused. _Well, I'll just have to get to it first!_

Sonic's Emerald Sense lead him towards the back of the store, to a door obviously not meant for regular customers. It was slightly ajar, and didn't creak as he pushed it wider. Not that it would have mattered much – the alarm was still ringing obnoxiously over his head, giving him a splitting headache, and now it was being joined by sirens coming from the outside. He'd have to make this quick.

Before him crouched a dark figure. It was difficult to make out details, but they had their back to the radiant hedgehog and didn't seem to have noticed him. Sonic smirked. _That faker is so going to get it this time!_ Silently, he raised his hands and lunged.

A yelp, trip and two crashes later, and the hedgehog was surprised to find himself staring not at midnight black fur and burning red eyes, but rather a shock of brown hair and the terrified face of a human youth. The (obvious) teenager gawked at him, his dark blue eyes wide open in shock, for several seconds before suddenly jerking away, backpedaling right into the wall. The bump to his head seemed to jolt him back to reality, and within seconds he was on his feet and flying out the door (with a speed Sonic would've appreciated if he wasn't so stunned at the time), screaming his head off. A moment after he left, an announcement echoed throughout the shop.

"This is the police! Exit the store and surrender yourselves immedia- huh? Well, that was fast – hey, wait! You're under arrest – what? Talk slowly!"

Shaking his head, Sonic got to his feet and brushed himself off. _Well, _he thought, _that was humiliating._ He approached the cabinet, a veritable fountain of Chaos Energy at this point. Opening it, a quick search found the yellow Emerald on the third shelf beside a glass box full of diamonds. He picked it up.

_This has to be the single most boring Emerald finding I've ever had. Where's the challenge?_

"So you did manage to survive, hedgehog."

_Right on cue._ "I hope I didn't disappoint," Sonic turned, stowing the Emerald in his quills with the light blue one, "but you'll have to do a bit better than exploding islands if you want to get rid of me."

"So I've noticed," Shadow muttered dryly as he stepped through the door, crossing his arms. "We can do this the easy way, or the hard way. Hand it over."

"What, you expect so little from me?" Sonic grinned and dropped into a fighting stance. Shadow did the same.

With Chaos Spears already heading for him, Sonic rolled to the left and leaped with a punch at the ready. Shadow dodged and the fist hit one of two thin pillars in the room, causing it to crack slightly. The golden hedgehog was too busy ducking under a roundhouse kick to notice. Shadow followed through with a series of rapid punches, several of which reached their target until Sonic responded with a surge of power that blasted the other away from him and into the opposing wall separating the room from the rest of the store. Through the uplifted dust covering the new hole in the wall, he was just barely able to make out the rising figure before flinging himself out of the way of several incoming Spears that crashed into the wall behind him. Speeding through the hole, Sonic found himself wrestling with the attacking black hedgehog in the main store.

Shadow hurled him into a set of glass display cases, which shattered as he collided with them and caused the alarms to start anew. Pushing himself up, Sonic barely had enough time to sweep the offending jewelry off his body before the other spindashed him into the wall. As he fell, he curled into a ball himself, and soon there were two sets of rapidly spinning quills throwing themselves at one another and rebounding off tables, pillars and walls that groaned underneath the pressure.

Skidding across the floor, Sonic braced himself and caught the ball of a black hedgehog, spinning in place a few times, before launching him back through the wall into the other room. Shadow hit the second pillar and was on his feet in an instant, his face set in a scowl. This was taking too long. He remained where he stood, closing his eyes and steadily gathering energy.

Sonic eyed the second addition to the wall warily, before cautiously approaching it. When no attacks were forthcoming, he poked his head through and looked for the other… to find his doppelganger glowing red.

Shadow opened his eyes.

"CHAOS BLAST!"

With nowhere to run, Sonic closed his own and shielded his face from the force of the explosion as it ripped through the building, destroying all the display sets and tearing through any remaining walls. He fell to his knees and squeezed his eyes shut, just barely holding his ground until the force began to die out and he sank to the ground, exhausted. Footsteps clinked towards him, but he was too tired to move away.

Shadow panted heavily, approaching the yellow hedgehog. The store was totaled; wreckage littered the floor, and nothing stood upright, or at all. The back room was no longer separate, and all the pillars had collapsed. The reason for all the destruction pulsed, as he expected, from the hedgehog's quills. Kneeling by the other, he reached out a hand.

The electricity returned, though in far lesser force than before. Shadow grit his teeth, but otherwise ignored it. He needed those Emeralds. Millimeters from the hedgehog's spines, he froze when a piece of plaster fell on his head.

He looked up.

The ceiling was spiderwebbed with cracks that were slowly widening. He cursed.

The store had been under a _building_, hadn't it?

Glancing at the hedgehog, whose ears were twitching to the sound of the rumbling structure, he sighed. He'd have to dig the Emerald out of the rubble later, if GUN didn't get to it first.

He left.

Sonic opened his eyes and was greeted with a wad of plaster to the face. Groaning, he sat up and rubbed his head – just as a particularly large chunk of ceiling fell less than a foot in front of him. He jumped.

All around him, things were falling. Support beams, glass fragments, even a candlestick bopped him on the head. Backing up, he was quick to rush back to the side door… which had been blocked off by debris.

With the looming avalanche above his head, Sonic put both hands on the largest piece of wood preventing his escape and pushed.

Nothing.

Blinking, Sonic tried again. He strained all of his tiny hedgehog weight against the wreckage, pushing harder as smaller fragments rained around him. Where were his Super abilities at times like –

Oh. Oh no.

Sonic began punching the wood, to no avail. Then he backed up, deciding to spindash it – there was no room. He was stuck.

More pieces fell on him.

Drawing his arms close, Sonic took a deep breath and concentrated – not an easy thing to do with a building falling on his head.

He focused his power and lashed out with all his might.

The little spark that appeared was embarrassing.

He tried again. Loud crashes echoed from above as the building lost all support. The spark looked even tinier now. The alarms were still blaring.

One more. Was he still invincible?

He drew power from the Emeralds and, finally, blasted his way through, rocketing out of the building just as it came down.

oOo

Shadow saw the gold streak from the roof of the opposing building. He watched as the terrified police called for backup (stressing the need for 'special forces'). Then he stood and vanished.

oOo

Sonic panted heavily, gulping down the fresh, clean and dust-free air as he made it to the outskirts of the city, finally slowing down and leaning beside a tree for support. He stared at his hands and attempted to summon the energy his Super form usually held.

His hands glowed weakly for a few seconds, only slightly brighter than the rest of his body, before dying out again. He stood like that for a minute. Then, he ran.

And he didn't stop.

End of Chapter Seven

Umm… *Turns, runs, and leaves behind an "I'm sorry!" note and a plate of assorted cookies.*


End file.
